A. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed to the purchasing and delivery of products and specifically to the monitoring of purchase order status and the performance of follow-up tasks to effect timely delivery.
B. Background
In a retail environment, it is important to have effective timing in the purchasing and delivery of products. For example, if a goal is to have goods be on store shelves for sale on a specific date, those goods should be delivered in such a timeframe to effect that goal. If the goods arrive to the store too early, it creates inventory problems and costs. If the goods arrive too late, the sales window is eroded, resulting in lost sales. Therefore, it is important for the buyer or person making purchase orders to have adequate guidance on the timing for placing such purchase orders in order to meet the retailer's goals.
It is also important for the buyer to be able to track the progress of the purchase order. If there are delays with the fulfillment of the purchase order, either at the vendor or at some intermediate delivery company, it is important for the buyer to know of such delays promptly. This allows for remedial measures to be taken so that the retailer's goal of having the goods on sale on a specific date may still be met. Current systems and methods do not adequately facilitate successful remedial measures to be taken. Furthermore, current systems provide insufficient guidance on the timing of purchase orders or on the monitoring of the progress of purchase order fulfillment. They do not facilitate the control of follow up and remedial activities from the purchase ordering system.